Central City swamped by flood waters

CENTRAL CITY- — A strong afternoon storm in northern Somerset County caused the worst flooding in recent memory for residents of Central City Borough and Shade Township.

Authorities closed Lambert Street for more than two hours as water from Dark Shade Creek foamed and swirled just below the bottom of the bridge. Meanwhile members of the Central City fire department worked throughout the afternoon to pump water from basements.

Michelle Camisa of Center Street said it was around noon that she lost her Internet connection. Within minutes she watched as the water swelled from a nearby creek and spilled onto the lawns and streets of Central City.

“We had about 10 minutes where it rained so hard everything flooded,” she said. “We’ve had some flooding in this area but never anything as significant as this.”

Camisa said her basement and garage remained swamped as of 2:30 p.m.

“I’ve been working to clear my house out for the past two hours,” she said.

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Common basement appliances including furnaces, washers and dryers were ruined throughout the region. Central City fire Chief Dale Russian said the department pumped water from at least 15 homes and rescued one person from a water-locked trailer.

“There were six to eight homes that were surrounded by water,” he said.

Russian thanked fellow members for their help. He said Shade-Central City School District administrators even dismissed junior firefighters from class to help.

Most importantly, Russian said, no one was injured.

“(The flooding) was probably the worst I’ve ever seen,” he added.Most residents made similar assessments.

“(My road) looked like a river,” said Penny Roberts of Zigler Street. “We never saw it this bad.”

Less than a mile away along Rock Cut Road, Tom Huston and his wife, Jen, watched helplessly as the water battered the foundation of an unoccupied trailer and shed on their property.

“Yeah, this is definitely the worst I’ve seen it,” Huston said. “In literally 20 minutes it went from contained by the banks to this.

“It is what it is,” he said, shrugging, after noting that he had purchased flood insurance. “Nothing really you can do.”

Eighteen-year-old Kelly Wagner said there was a half-foot of water running through her parent’s basement along Center Street.

“It’s usually like 2 inches (when it floods), not 6,” Wagner said.

The storm impacted even those hoping to avoid it. Amy Lightfoot, originally of Culpeper, Va., had just left her home in Boswell for a hometown wedding when she was halted on Route 30 just west of Reels Corner.S

everal vehicles had stopped and turned around at the sight of water rushing across the roadway from a flash flood. Lightfootsaid she’d never seen anything like it.

“I knew they had a lot of flooding (in Virginia) so that’s why I left early instead of tonight,” Lightfootsaid.

Minutes later the stream subsided slightly and she plowed her car through the running water.